Internet Shopping

We can all agree shopping online is the most convenient way to make a purchase. The ability to view compare items and find a great price from the comfort of home is great. However when you make an online purchase you have to provide some very personal information like your name address and credit/debit card information when you provide this information you can be exposed to possible identity theft.  Online retailers have taken many steps to help protect your information but you should not depend complexly on the retailer to protect your information. You have to take necessary steps to protect your information as well when conducting internet shopping or shopping online.

When making a purchase online use the same computer.  I would use this one computer for not only online purchases but online banking as well. This computer should not be used for anything else like Facebook, or emailing. I would not use any public computer or Wi Fi service for any online banking or purchases. You stand the risk of someone logging in after you have logged off possibly leaving your personal information on the browser history in the cache for example. I would use a dedicated credit card as well for any online purchases as well. The credit card companies normally reimburse your for any fraudulent purchases as long as you provide the proper information stating you did not make the purchase.  You can use a onetime credit card with a certain amount on the card it will only be good for the one time purchase so it cannot be used again.

Another option to protect your information while internet shopping is creating an alternate email address this email should only be used to make purchases online. This will give you a good tracking method of your online purchases. Having one email for just online purchases allows you to filter through and avoid opening up spam emails. Some hackers will use a method known as phishing this is when they pretend to be from e respected retailer asking you to click on a link so they can get access to your user name and password. Don’t click the link! Delete it immediately and alert the retailer of the phishing email. 

Finally, whatever device you decide to use to conduct any type of transaction online please make sure you have virus protection on your computer or mobile device. You can purchase a good antivirus for around $20.00 a small price to pay for protecting your information.

I hope this post was helpful please a comment below

Mark Carvajal